🌾 Sourdough Tangzhong Bread (Soft & Fluffy)

 🧾 Ingredients

Tangzhong (make first)

• 20g bread flour
• 100g water

Dough

• 300g bread flour
• 100g active sourdough starter (bubbly, recently fed)
• 120g milk (or water if you prefer)
• 30g sugar (optional, but helps softness)
• 6g salt
• 30g butter or oil (softened)
• All of the tangzhong

⸻

🍳 Step 1: Make Tangzhong

1. In a small pan, mix flour + water until no lumps.
2. Cook on low heat, stirring constantly.
3. It thickens into a paste (like mashed potato consistency).
4. Once you see lines when stirring, remove from heat.
5. Let it cool completely.

✨ Tip: You can make this ahead and chill it.

⸻

🥣 Step 2: Mix Dough

1. In a bowl, combine:
• Bread flour
• Milk
• Tangzhong
• Sourdough starter
2. Mix until a rough dough forms.
3. Cover and rest 30 minutes (this is your autolyse).

⸻

🧂 Step 3: Add Remaining Ingredients

1. Add:
• Sugar
• Salt
• Butter/oil
2. Knead until smooth and elastic:
• By hand: ~10–15 mins
• Mixer: ~8–10 mins

You’re aiming for a soft, slightly tacky dough, not sticky chaos.

⸻

🕰️ Step 4: Bulk Fermentation

1. Cover and let rise at room temp (around Singapore weather = fast lane 🚀).
2. Duration: 3–5 hours, depending on your starter strength.
3. Do stretch & folds every 30–45 mins for the first 2 hours.

Signs it’s ready:

• Dough has risen ~50–70%
• Feels airy and jiggly

⸻

🔄 Step 5: Shape

1. Lightly flour surface.
2. Gently deflate dough.
3. Shape into:
• Sandwich loaf (roll it up) OR
• Round boule
4. Place into loaf tin or banneton.

⸻

❄️ Step 6: Final Proof

Option A (same day):

• Proof 2–3 hours at room temp

Option B (better flavor):

• Fridge overnight (8–12 hours)

⸻

🔥 Step 7: Bake

For loaf tin:

• Bake at 180°C for 30–35 mins

For boule:

• Preheat oven to 230°C
• Bake:
• 20 mins covered (with lid/foil)
• 20 mins uncovered at 200°C

⸻

🧊 Step 8: Cool (Important!)

Let it cool at least 1 hour before slicing.

Cut too early = gummy interior (the bread equivalent of undercooked cake).

⸻

🌟 What to Expect

• Super soft crumb (almost like milk bread)
• Light sourdough tang
• Stays fresh longer thanks to tangzhong

Simit (Turkish Street Food)

Ingredients

500g bread flour

1/2 tsp full instant yeast

1/2 tbsp salt

300ml lukewarm water

Dip

1/2 cup grape or mulberry molasses

1/4 cup water

1/2 tbsp flour

generous amount of roasted sesame seeds

Directions

• (made half volume)
• add all dry ingredients together into a bowl and mix well
• stir by adding water gradually till all combined
• transfer to work table and knead to smooth consistency (about 10min)
• cover bowl with damp towel and till double in size (mine took ~ 1hr 45min)
• transfer on working surface, punch down and knead the dough
• divide into 6 equal parts (about 130g) and divide again into 2pcs of each dough
• round each dough and rest under wet towel
• pre-heat oven to 230°C and prepare the dip
• mix molasses, water and flour to thicken
• prepare the roasted sesame in a deep plate or tray
• roll each of the 2 dough into length of approx 45cm at least
• then twirl around each other and pinch to form a round wheel
• soak the dough into the dip followed by the sesame seeds
• bake at 230°C top+bottom heat without fan for 15-20min until light brown and crunchy
• it will be soft while hot... let it cool down and it will be crunchy

Foodnote: Recipe is from here. Good to eat with cheese or butter.

Easy Cheesy Naan

Ingredients

1 3/4 cup self-raising flour

1 cup greek yogurt

a pinch of salt

mozarella cheese

Dressing

butter

garlic powder

chili flakes

parsley

Directions

• mix flour, yogurt and salt and knead till a dough is formed
• cut into 8 equal sizes and flattened each dough
• fill with mozarella cheese and roll to flatten again
• cook on a pan with medium high heat till golden brown
• brush with dressings and ready to eat

Foodnote: I need to clear my self-raising flour and come across this simple recipe. I have all ingredients except parsley, so I just top with whatever I have. This is really easy and yummy. Since it yields 8pcs, I can keep the balance frozen and pop up in the air fryer whenever I need a yummy carbo fix!

Sourdough Bread 2025

IMPORTANT: Prepare a batch of sourdough starter from matured starter to keep in the fridge before preparing the set for baking

Starter Ratio 1 : 5 : 4

10g mature starter

50g bread flour

40g cold drinkable water (distill, tap or bottled)

Directions

• remove starter from fridge and allow starter to grow till it's peak
• feed repeatedly till starter can triple in height
• use immediately

NOTE: microbial activity is best between 24-28°C. Keep starter at this temperate for optimal growth. Eg. starter in cooler bag with ice pack. Do not place starter in the fridge during this process.

Sourdough Recipe

280g bread flour  

35g bread or wholemeal flour

220g water

63g starter at it's peak

6.3g salt

= 604g dough weight, 28°C desired temperature

Directions

• Preparation: have a large bowl with water for wetting finger and cleaning hand
• Autolyse: in a large mixing bowl add flour and water. Use dough whisk and stir till no lump or dry flour left. Use hand to squish when it is difficult to use whisk. Can also use mixer at lowest speed till flour is fully hydrated
• wet a scraper and scrape the sides clean... rest for 20-60min
• Mixing: add and smear starter at peak into bowl and sprinkle salt. Dimple and squeeze dough till salt is fully dissolved
• scrape sides with wet scraper and rest for 30min
• pinch some dough in a measuring cup to gauge how much dough rises before resting
• Slap & Fold: lightly wet working surface, loosen dough from sides and overturn the bowl. With moist hand, pick up top and bottom of the dough, rotate, slap on the counter and fold over to form layers. Repeat till dough is tight and smooth. Round the dough
• if double portion, split the dough into 2 here... do slap and fold till dough is tight, round and rest
• spray container lightly with oil and place dough in to rest for 30min
• Laminate or Dimple Fold: to laminate, drop dough on lightly wet work surface. Stretch starting from the centre and a thin rectangular shape is formed. Add inclusions here if any. Fold in third and form a round dough. For dimple fold, work in the bowl itself. Sprinkle inclusions on the dough. Dimple the inclusions so that it will stick to the dough. Pick top part of dough and fold dough to a third. Fold bottom to cover the dough. Repeat to right and left side. Round the dough and rest for 30min
• Bench/Coil Fold: transfer dough on lightly wet surface. Stretch into thirds top, bottom, left and right till a tight dough is formed. Another option is to stretch the dough and roll from front to back and roll again from left to right. Form a round dough and place in a tall container with markings.
• Bench rest: allow dough to rest and ferment till 50% growth
• Final Shaping: lightly dust work surface with flour evenly. Dust hand and scraper as well. Remove dough to fall onto the dusted surface. Using scraper, loosen edges and form a square. Stretch each corner and stick to the middle. Lift 2 sides to form a hotdog shape. Overlap and pinch the dough. Then stretch, tuck and roll forward to create surface tension. Tuck the edges to the bottom. Squeeze using the scraper to create more tension. Tuck and pinch the open top and bottom dough and seal it.
• Overnight Cold Retard: transfer to a banetton and leave in fridge (4°C) for 8-24hrs. Leave the banetton uncovered.
• Score and Bake: pre-heat oven at 250°C for 40min. (for better scoring, leave the dough in the freezer for 40-60min). Bake for 20min covered
• remove from dutch oven and place on oven tray... bake for another 20min at 230°C till crust is deep dark brown.

Foodnote: Sign up for basic sourdough bread course from Bespoke Bread. Learn some new interesting tips and skill. So I summed up what I learn here and also my first trial bake on 13 Sep. Did some mistake when I left the dough in the fridge at the cooler part haizz... it still turns up ok. The pizza cheese + chilli flakes is actually good. The mixed nuts may be too heavy and underproofed. Below is the summary of schedule and I started Day 1 on a Wednesday.

SUMMARY

Day 1

- 10pm take starter out from fridge

Day 2

- 5am feed 1:5:4
- leave at counter top (24-28°C)
- let it triple size
- approx 10pm feed again 1:5:4 (double portion for 2 loaves)

Day 3

- 9am mix flour+water to autolyse
- 10am add starter + salt, dimple and mix till no more salt granule 

- keep the balance starter in a clean container in the fridge
- 10:30am slap & fold 
- take some dough into container to check rise
- split dough into 2 portions, slap & fold into separate lightly oiled bowls
- 11:15am laminate with inclusion
- 12:15am bench or coil fold
- rest till rise 50%

- approx 5pm shape dough and keep in fridge

Day 4

- 5am (8 to 24hr) pre-heat oven together with dutch oven at 250°C

- same time place bread into freezer

- 1hr later score and bake bread in dutch oven

- 20min later reduce oven temp to 230°C and remove bread from dutch oven into baking tray

- bake for another 20min

- remove from oven onto grill to let bread cool down for at least 2hr before cutting

Recipe for 2 loaves

630g bread flour

440g water

126g starter at it’s peak

13g salt

11g diastatic malt

each dough approx. 600g

Inclusions

(approx 80g for 1 loaf)

- emborg pizza topping

- cheddar cubed

- chilli flakes

- jalapeno

- sundried tomatoes

- any seeds

- any nuts

Freezing/Heating Instruction: slice the bread and use parchment paper in between each slice. Keep in ziplock bag. To heat up, I use air fryer at 100°C for 3min straight from the freezer.

Update 4th October: Bake again and this time both bread turns out much better. Crumb looks good too... check it out! Kept forgetting that I have jalapeno, sundried tomatoes and also diastatic malt. Next bake will use these woohoo.

Sourdough Bread with Butter

Ingredients

100g active sourdough starter

330g warm filtered water

25g butter or olive oil

500g bread flour

10g salt

Directions

• 
  combine sourdough starter with water followed by flour and salt
• mix until incorporated and rest for 30min
• add butter and knead again
• rest for 1hr
• stretch and fold 2x every 60min and let it bulk ferment for 2-3hrs
• shape and proof the dough in fridge for 12-14hours
• bake in dutch oven for 20min covered at 240°C and 15min uncovered at 220°C

Foodnote: Finally wanted to try add butter to my sourdough. Got the recipe here. 

I bake it open for 20min but the crumb still look pale ggrrrrr....The crumb texture is very soft. Doesn't taste very butter but really nice. I got too excited and cut it when it is still warm hehe. Ate 3 slices!! So yummy! Next will substitute with olive oil and/or add jalapeno and cheese woohoo.

Roghini Naan

Ingredients

520g bread flour (4 cups)

1 tbsp sugar

1 tsp salt

2 tsp yeast

1/2 tsp baking soda

45g ghee or butter (3 tbsp)

180g warm milk

180g warm water

2 tbsp yoghurt

sesame seeds

1 egg yolk + 1 tbsp milk for egg wash

ghee or butter to brush cooked naan

Directions

• 
  mix all ingredients in a stand mixer and knead with dough hook for 7-8min till smooth and stretchy dough formed
• transfer to a lightly oiled bowl and cover
• rest for 2hrs till double in size
• punch down the dough and divide into 8pcs (approx 120g each)
• cover in wet towel and rest for another 20min
• pre-heat oven to 220°C
• on a parchment paper, flatten each dough to flat round shape
• using finger tips, punch down to create holes
• brush with egg wash and sesame seed
• bake for 10-12min till golden brown
• (bake for 8min to keep in freezer for another day consumption)
• brush with ghee or butter once cooked (skip this step if freezing naan)

Foodnote: Bought instant roghini naan from Mustafa and it is so delicious. There is no sesame seeds topping and I just popped it into the air fryer at 200°C for 3min straight from the freezer. Once cooked, I brush it with Lurpak butter and sprinkle with chilli flakes. So yummy!! Found this recipe so I decided to try it. Since I don't have the bread stamp, I punch using my finger tips following reference from this video.

This recipe is easy to make and quite flexible. From the freezer, I can just pop it in the air fryer at 200°C for 3-5min. I can also add topping to make into pizza.

Easiest Baguette

Ingredients

950g bread flour

16g salt

2g yeast

730ml water

Half amount with sourdough (KIV for future experimentation)

455g bread flour

8g salt

40g sourdough starter

345g water

diastatic malt

Directions

• mix all ingredients together till well combined
• cover the bowl and leave it for 8-10 hours (can keep in the oven)
• generously flour working surface (to avoid sticking) and transfer dough
• divide into 4 equal parts
• take each piece and stretch it gently into baguette shape
• place in baking tray with parchment paper or baguette tray
• bake in a pre-heated oven 250°C for approx 25min till golden brown

Foodnote: Saw this recipe so obviously must try. Most of the baguette recipe I tried is a bit tedious or have long list of ingredients. I am constantly searching for the most basic recipe out there. 

I tried with half of the recipe. Mixed the ingredients at 9pm at night and bake it at 7am the next day. I thought it wouldn't yield so much dough and use my 2.35 litre pyrex bowl with cover. Around 3am woke up and discovered that the cover pops and there's a bit of overflow. Quickly replace with a wok cover instead hehe.

475g prima bread flour

8g salt

1g instant SAF yeast

365g bottled filter water

Used the non-stick baguette tray and after shaping (which is basically just lightly stretching it into longish shape) sprayed the surface generously with water before popping it into the oven. Baked the bread at 240°C for 25min. Smell good while baking in the oven. Amazing that the crinkle dough puffed up into smooth crispy baguette yippee!!!

Going to try using sourdough and also add diastatic malt to make the crumbs softer. Find this a bit chewy but nice & crispy when toasted. 

Easy Foccacia (Same Day Bake)

Ingredients

500g bread flour

4-5g instant yeast

400g warm water

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 tsp salt

1 tsp honey

Directions

• in a large bowl mix flour with instant yeast
• add in water and mix
• add in the rest of the ingredients and mix well
• cover the bowl and rest the sticky dough for 30min
• fold dough using spatula and rest for another 1hour
• wet hand and fold nsew followed by coil fold
• add generous amount of olive oil on baking tray to cover all surface
• transfer dough, cover the dough in oil and rest for another 30-45min
• meantime, prepare toppings if any (I'm using paprika powder, tomatoes and mild cheese)
• pre-heat oven to 240°C lowest rack with no fan
• use finger to poke the dough and spread it out
• add toppings (eg. paprika, garlic powder, herbs etc), sprinkle salt and more olive oil
• bake 15min
• cool on cooling rack

Foodnote: So after making my sourdough foccacia, decided to try this easy recipe for same day bake.

Recipe is taken from here. It actually turns out good and yummy. At first I thought the bottom is a bit burnt but it was ok. Very nice when eaten hot as it will have very crispy crust. Next time I would not put it at lowest rack... lower but not that low hehe. Overall I am satisfied with this recipe and will definitely make it again. Will just lined with baking paper if I'm worried about over baking the base hehe.

Baked this again on 5 July to share with a friend when we catch up for dinner... and it is really so yummy eating it hot. Very crispy and delicious. I fold in the cheese before final 1hr resting so that the cheese can distribute in the dough. Can't stop eating so definitely will be a go to recipe for foccacia.